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Nutrition, Biodiversity and

Sustainable Diets

co-chaired by

Braulio F. De Souza Dias, Executive Secretary, Convention on Biological Diversity

Jomo Sundaram, Assistant Director- General, Economic and Social Development

Department, FAO

On occasion of the

14th Session of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture

the Food and Agriculture Organization and The Convention on Biological Diversity

hosted a side-event on the 15th April 2013, 13.45-14.45h, Iran Room, FAO HQ Italy on

Panelists and Presentations:

• Barbara Burlingame, Principal Nutrition Officer, FAO - Key issues in nutrition for the CGRFA

• Bruce Cogill, Senior Nutritionist, Bioversity International - Methods and indicators for sustainable diets

• Matthias Halwart, Senior Aquaculture Officer, FAO – Assessing agricultural landscapes for

sustainable diets: studies on aquatic biodiversity from rice-based ecosystems

• Frank Begemann, Director, Sustainability, International Agricultural Affairs, German Federal

Office for Agriculture and Food (BLE) – Biodiversity and nutrition: a perspective from the BLE

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Assessing agricultural

landscapes for sustainable

diets

Studies on aquatic biodiversity and rice

production

Matthias Halwart

FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department

with

Peter Balzer, Devin Bartley, Barbara Burlingame, Penroong Bamrungrach, Ruth

Charrondiere, Xaypladeth Choulamany, Linda Collette, Hans Guttman, Simon Funge-

Smith, Caroline Garaway, David James, Jiansan Jia, Peter Kenmore, Aidong Luo, Josef

Margraf, Eric Meusch, Weimin Miao, Mulia Nurhasan, Chanthone Phothitay, Jogeir Toppe

and William Settle

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Agricultural landscapes and diets

• Work with partners addressing rice and associated

aquatic biodiversity, its availability and use in SE

Asia (FNPP-I)

• its role for nutrition and diets in the Lao PDR

(FNPP-II)

• continued this year as part of Regional Rice Pilot

Initiative in Lao PDR, Indonesia and the

Philippines

• relevant to: CBD Decision X.34, RAMSAR

Resolution X.31, International Rice Commission ,

CGRFA and SoW AqGR

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Cambodia China Laos Viet Nam Total

Amphibians 2 3 10 -- 11

Crustaceans 6 4 5 3 11

Fishes 70 54 26 14 145

Molluscs 1 5 8 6 15

Reptiles 8 -- 7 -- 13

Plants 13 -- 20 14 37

Total 100 66 74 37 232

Source: Halwart & Bartley (Eds.) 2005

Rice fields – more than just rice!

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Aquatic organisms as food

• Fish is mostly eaten fresh.

• Processing of fish and other aquatic animals

aims at increasing the storability.

• Processing techniques encountered include:

– Drying

– Smoking

– Salting

– Fermenting

– Preserving in

Alcohol

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Assessing agricultural landscapes

for sustainable diets

• To what extent do people rely on

landscapes and nature?

• To what extent do aquatic

organisms from natural

ecosystems versus rice-based

ecosystems contribute to the

overall diet?

• What is the nutritional value of

the aquatic species encountered?

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The household survey

• Monthly survey for

12 months

• 240 households in 48

villages of 3 Provinces

(Champassak, Savanna-

khet and Xieng Khouang)

• Main aim to quantify the

importance of fish and

other aquatic animals

from rice-based

ecosystems for household

consumption.

Source: FAO/LARReC 2007

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= 93%!

Source: FAO/LARReC 2007

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Source: FAO/LARReC 2007

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Fish for a balanced diet and good health

• Source of

– protein

micronutrients that are

not or not adequately

found in rice

– fatty acids

– calcium

– iron

– zinc

– vitamin A

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Vitamin A deficiency

Consequences:

– Eye damage (picture)

– Impaired immunity

– Increased mortality

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Vitamin A content in different fish species

Species Vitamin A (Mean, RAE/100g)

Amblypharyngodon mola 2,680

Rasbora tornieri 1,477

Clupeoides borneensis 250

Channa punctatus 140

Corica soborna 90

Silver carp 30

Source: N. Roos et al., 2002

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Distribution of Vitamin A in Amblypharyngodon mola

53 %

39 %

7 %

1 %

Source: H. Thorseng, 2006

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Enhance production and biodiversity from

agricultural landscapes for better diets?

• Promote better management practices

• Maintain connectivity

• Select nutrient-dense species

• .... all this needs to be done with farmers

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Promote better management

practices

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Promote better management

practices

Source: Prein & Dey 2006

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Maintain connectivity

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Source: H. Thorseng 2006

Zinc and Calcium content

Species: 1.Barbodes altus; 2. Barbodes gonionotus;

3.Puntioplites proctozysron; 4. Channa marulius; 5. Channa

micropeltes; 6. Helostoma temmincki; 7. Trichogaster

microlepis; 8. Parambassis wollfi Osteochilus hasselti; 10.

Dangila sp.; 11. Euryglossa panoides 12. Cyclocheilichthys

apogon; 13. Parachela siamensis; 14. Rasbora tornieri; 15.

Dermogenys pusilla; 16. Esomus longimanus

Species

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17

mg

Zn

/kg

DM

0

50

100

150

200

250

Error bar: SD, n=3 samples

Species

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17

g C

a/kg

DM

0

20

40

60

80Photo: H. Thorseng 2006

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Thank you!

=>Agricultural rice-based landscapes, their management, connectivity and

species composition are critical for sustainable diets

=> Goals of food security and environmental protection not only

compatible, but synergistic

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References

• FAO/LARReC 2007. Aquatic biodiversity in rice-based ecosystems for Lao PDR.

Technical Paper. FAO – Netherlands Partnership Programme (FNPP) 2006–07

(unpublished).

• Greenland, D.J. 1997. The sustainability of rice farming. CAB International,

Wallingford, UK. 273 p.

• Halwart, M. and D. Bartley (Eds.) 2005. Aquatic biodiversity in rice-based ecosystems.

Studies and reports from Cambodia, China, Lao PDR and Viet Nam [CD-ROM]. Rome,

FAO. Also available at ftp://ftp.fao.org/FI/CDrom/AqBiodCD20Jul2005/default.htm

• Prein, M. & M. M Dey 2006 Community-based fish culture in seasonal floodplains. In:

Halwart, M.; Dam, A.A. van (Eds.): Integrated irrigation and aquaculture in West Africa:

concepts, practices and potential, pp. 17-26. Rome, FAO. 181 pp.

• Roos, N., T. Leth, J. Jakobsen, and S.H. Thilsted 2002. High Vitamin A content in some

small indigenous fish species in Bangladesh: perspectives for food-based strategies to

reduce Vitamin A deficiency. Int. J. Food Sci. Nutr. 53: 425-437.

• Thorseng, H. 2006. The role of fish in food and nutrition security in Cambodia.

Presentation at the National Conference on ‘Prioritizing Fisheries for Cambodia’s

National Development and Community Aspiration’, Sihanoukville, Cambodia. 14-15

February 2006

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Acknowledgements/

Photo credits

• Slide 2: FAO/A. Luo (top left & top right); J. Margraf (top middle),

FAO/M. Halwart (bottom left)

• Slide 5: FAO/P. Balzer

• Slide 6: FAO/M. Halwart (top), FAO/A. Luo (bottom)

• Slide 10: FAO/E. Meusch

• Slide 11: H. Thorseng

• Slide 12: M. Prein

• Slide 14: FAO/P. Balzer

• Slide 15: FAO/F. Botts (top left), FAO/Y. Zhou (top right and bottom left),

FAO/M. Halwart (bottom right)

• Slide 16: FAO/M. Halwart

• Slide 17: FAO/M. Halwart (top left and right), M. Prein (bottom left)

• Slide 18: H. Thorseng

• Slide 19: FAO/A. Luo (top left and right), G. Jahn (top middle)